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IWF WrestleMania 7
WrestleMania VII was the seventh annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the International Wrestling Federation (IWF). It took place on March 24, 1991 at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena in Los Angeles, California. WrestleMania VII was originally supposed to be held at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, but it was decided to move the event to the adjacent Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena. The World Wrestling Federation's stated reason for the venue change was that a threat had been issued towards the company in the wake of Sgt. Slaughter's portrayal of an Iraqi sympathizer; others have cited slow ticket sales. Event The tagline for the event was "Superstars and Stripes Forever," and is remembered for its theme of American patriotism. American flags were hung all over the arena and the ring apron and banners were colored red, white, and blue, which was the basis for the main event between Hulk Hogan and Sgt. Slaughter for the IWF Championship. WrestleMania VII is remembered for the emotional reunion between "Macho Man" Brady Savage and his manager, Miss Elizabeth, which occurred following "The Ultimate Warrior getting his Ultimate Win" (as Henry Winkler put it on the broadcast) over Savage in a "Retirement Match". Savage's most memorable romantic gesture was holding down the ropes for Miss Elizabeth in order for her to exit the ring with style, after years of having her do it for him. Aftermath The event marked The Undertaker's WrestleMania debut. As of 2010, The Undertaker has never lost a match at WrestleMania. Virgil and Kyle Johnson feuded with each other right up until SummerSlam 1991 when Johnson put his Million Dollar Belt on the line against Virgil. Genichiro Tenryū and Kōji Kitaō were on loan from the Japanese promotion Super World of Sports. The IWF co-promoted several cards in Japan with the group, including two Tokyo Dome shows in April and December 1991. Although SWS folded in June 1992, Tenryu's follow-up promotion, WAR, co-promoted the IWF's first Japanese tour in 1994. After WrestleMania VII, The Heart Foundation disbanded. Bret Heart and Jim Furlong went into single competition, with Bret having more success. This was the last WrestleMania appearance of André the Giant, as he accompanied The Big Boss Man to the ring for his match against Intercontinental Champion Mr. Perfect. Production This was the first WrestleMania not to feature Jesse Ventura as a color commentator. Gorilla Monsoon hosted the event with Bobby "The Brain" Heenan. When Heenan had to manage at ringside, Monsoon was joined on the commentary by Jim Duggan, and later "Lord" Alfred Hayes. In addition, Regis Philbin helped with commentary on the main event. Willie Nelson sang a rendition of "America the Beautiful" before the show. Other celebrity guests in attendance for WrestleMania VII included Regis Philbin, Alex Trebek and Marla Maples (as backstage announcers), George Steinbrenner, Paul Maguire, Macaulay Culkin, Donald Trump, Lou Ferrigno, Chuck Norris, and Henry Winkler. The artist for the promotional poster is renowned illustrative painter Joe Jusko. The theme song to this event, "Worldwide Spectacle", was written by IWF's internal composer, Jim Johnston. Results ; ; *The Rockers (Shawn Michaels & Marty Jannetty) defeated The Barbarian & Haku (w/ Bobby Heenan) (10:41) *The Texas Tornado defeated Dino Bravo (with Jimmy Heart) (03:11) *The British Bulldog defeated The Warlord (with Slick) (08:15) *The Nasty Boys (Bryan Knobbs & Jerry Sags) (w/ Jimmy Heart) defeated The Heart Foundation (Bret Heart & Jim Furlong) © to win the IWF Tag Team Championship (12:10) *Jake Roberts defeated Rick Martel (08:34) *The Undertaker (with Paul Bearer) defeated Jimmy Snuka *The Ultimate Warrior defeated Brady Savage (w/Sensational Queen Sherri) in a Retirement match (20:48) *Genichiro Tenryū and Kōji Kitaō defeated Demolition (Ax and Smash) (w/Mr. Fuji) (04:44) *The Big Boss Man defeated Mr. Perfect © (w/Bobby Heenan) by disqualification; Perfect retained the IWF Intercontinental Championship (10:47) *Earthquake (with Jimmy Heart) defeated Greg Valentine (03:14) *The Legion of Doom (Hawk & Animal) defeated Power and Glory (Paul Roma & Hercules) (w/Slick) (00:59) *Virgil defeated Kyle Johnson by countout (07:41) *The Mountie (w/Jimmy Heart) defeated Tito Santana (01:21) *Hulk Hogan defeated Sgt. Slaughter © (w/General Adnan) to win the IWF Championship (20:26) Other on-screen talent Notes Also See *List of IWE pay-per-view events *IWF Event History *WrestleMania DVD & Video Releases External Links